02.Palm oil supplier gets the thumbs down

US fast-food giant Burger King will no longer buy palm oil from Sinar Mas. One of Indonesia’s largest palm oil producers, it has been the subject of a name-and-shame campaign by Greenpeace, which prompted several corporate buyers to cancel major contracts.

Palm oil is a bone of contention for sustainability lobbyists around the world as some plantations, such as those of Sinar Mas, deforest natural habitats and create greenhouse gases. The movement against palm oil is also gaining momentum on another front, with research showing the oil – which contains more than 50% saturated fat – also contributes to cardiovascular disease.

In Australia, Hungry Jack’s (a franchise of Burger King), McDonald’s and KFC all buy their palm oil from Goodman Fielder, which sources its supplies from sustainable plantations in peninsular Malaysia that were established decades ago on sites of old rubber plantations. Hungry Jack’s told CHOICE that it had never bought palm oil from Sinar Mas and its cooking oil is a blend of canola (70%), sunflower (20%) and palm oil (10%) . McDonald’s cooking oil blend contains a small amount of palm oil, while KFC is testing the use of blended Hi Oleic Canola-Sunflower oil in 23 stores in Victoria . Pizza Hut does not use any palm oil.